A parish council in Surrey has kick-started legal proceedings against the approval of a major green belt housing scheme by Berkeley Homes.

In November a planning inspector ruled that Berkeley’s 114-home scheme in the village of Effingham just outside Guildford had demonstrated the “very special circumstances” necessary to justify housing development in the Green Belt, because the scheme was essential in order to pay for the infrastructure required to allow a previous permission to go ahead.

However, councillor Paula Moss of Effingham Parish Council told Housing Today she has begun the process of applying for judicial review of the scheme, with a pre-action letter written to Berkeley and notification given to the Planning Inspectorate’s law team before Christmas.

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